In previous posts, I’ve told how I began the Elf Toy of the Month by sending a gift from the elves each month for a year to my young niece, Rachel. As an adult, Rachel remembered the gifts with fondness and suggested she help me create a business around the concept.
The first thing Rachel and I had to decide was the age range for our gifts. Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development describes children ages 4 through 7 as being in the “Intuitive” stage when they easily believe in magic. The age span 5 through 7 is a perfect time to introduce the Elves of Glimmer Glen.™ It’s also the perfect age for children to bond with their grandparents or other family and friends in delightfully imaginative ways.
We wanted to have some reference to the holidays and seasons. Children feel comforted by traditions and images like apples in fall, flowers in spring, parades and fireworks on July Fourth.
Another consideration was focused on the type of age-appropriate toy. We wanted items that an elf might make … natural and classic-type toys that encourage children’s creativity and imagination. That meant no batteries or plastic.
And lastly, these toys needed to be quality-made … gifts that parents and grandparents would feel good about giving. We envisioned a lively conversation between the child and gift giver about the toy. We hoped this would help to “break the ice” and get a good dialog started.
To see our final choices, you can go to Whimsmoore’s Elf Toy-of-the-Month™ page.
In my next post, I’ll describe how we personalize the gifts, making sure that “grandma” and the elves both receive credit.
Tags: Family Bonding, Gifts grandparents can give, Kids' toys, Toy of the Month
